Casing-head top



C. S. WRIGHT.

CASING HEAD TOP. APP4L|CA TI0N FILED DEC. 6. 1919[ Patented J um 15, 1920.

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c. s. WRIGHT. CASING HEAD TOP.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 6, 1919.

Patehted June 15, 1920.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CLYDE S. WRIGHT, OF TOLEDO, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE NATIONAL SUPPLY COMPANY, OF TOLEDO, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

CASING-HEAD 'ror.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 15, 1920.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLYDE S. WRIGHT, a citizen of the United States, residin at T0- ledo, in the county of Lucas and tate of Ohio, have invented new and useful Improvements in Casing-Head Tops, of which the following is a specification. My invention relates to casing-head tops provided with means for suspending thereon the tubing in which the pump-rods of oil wells reciprocate. It is the common practice to suspend the tubing in the well-casing by means of a collar or coupling connecting two .sections of the tubing and resting on a tubing rin on the upper end of the casinghead. plied to the tubing, the latter is lowered through the casing until its lower end reaches the bottom of the well, at which time the tubing is marked at the level of the top of the casinghead. The tubing is then raised to give it proper clearance from the bottom of the well and again marked at the same level. The joint or length of tubing so marked is removed, cut oil at the second mark, and the end thereof which was removed from the tubing still in the casing is threaded externally. A coupling is screwed on the newly made threads and a length of tubing carrying the T-head at the top of the tubing is screwed into the upper end of the coupling. The tubing is then lowered u nt1l the coupling rests upon the tubing rlng. The upper one of said marks made on the tubing serves to indicate the amount of the said clearance.

The defects of this manner of suspension of the tubing are, first, it is almost impossible for ordinary workmen at the well to cut as good a thread with hand tools as pipemill manufacturers can with machine tools at the place of manufacture; so that defective joints are often made which are liable to leak or pull out after the tubing has been put back into the well and suspended on the said. coupling; and second, there 1s always the possibility of something falling against the tubing above the casing-head and breaking it off in the threads under the couplmg, thereby allowing the tubing to drop to the bottom of the well.

My principal objects are to provide for the tubing an improved suspension means which is without threads; to give the tubing such lateral support that it cannot be broken efore this particular coupling is ap off at such a point as will let it fall; and to utilize the suspension device as a part of the means for elevating and holding the tubing preparatory to removing the length thereof above the said coupling thereby requiring but one elevator. Other objects appear here inafter.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a central vertical section through a casing-head and my invention. appliedthereto, the pump-tubing being shown in such elevation and the casing being in vertical section and broken 01f. Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 showing a second stage in the operation of this invention, parts being omitted. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the upper tubing-ring; Fig. 4, a perspective view of the lower tubing-ring; Fig. 5, a top plan view of the slips by which the tubing is gripped during suspension; and Fig. 6, a perspective of the slips.

On the drawings, 1 designates the wellcasing supporting at its upper end the easing-head 2 of usual construction. The casing-head has at its upper end the usual internal annular flange 3, on which the external flange 4 on the periphery of the lower tubing-ring 5 rests. The tubing-ring 5 has at its lower end the annularinturned flange or shoulder 6 on which the lower packingring 7 rests. On this ring the annular packing 8 is supported. This packing in turn supports the upper packing-ring 9.

The length 10 of the pump-tubing extends through the said packing and packing-rings, and has at its lower end the coupling 11 which connects it to the tubing section 12 below. The upper end of the tubing-sec-' tion 10 bears the T-head 13 of the pump, 14 being the outlet for the oil pumped up the 'tubing and 15 the pump-rod extending through the top of the head. The opening within the flange or shoulder 6 is large enough to allow the coupling 11 and other couplings on the tubing to pass.

On the top of the ring '9 is the upper tubing-ring 16 which extends up above the ring venting it from slipping through the same.-

overlaps all but one of the joints, or pairs of each hole and into the top of the slip below,"

' plates about the holes.

The upper end of the central opening of the lower ring 5 is downwardly tapered at 19 to correspond with the opening 17 in the ring 16, so that the opening 19 will receive the set of slips 18 and griplthe tubing in the rin 5.

I have shown three slips 18 for a set, but the number may be more or less than three. I provided the hinge-plates 20, one of which adjacent edges of the slips. Each end of each plate 20" has a hole 21 elongated at right angles to the plane of thejoint 1t covers, and a pivot screw 22 passes through the heads of the screws overlapping the oint which is not covered bya plate 20.

lates 20 may be placed on the bottom of the slips.

The upper end of the ring 16 is provided at opposite sides with the downwardlyhooked ears24 to which hoisting links 25 may be applied. for handling the tubing.

Fig. l 'shows the parts as they are when the tubing is in normal position for pumping. To set the tubing with proper clearance at the bottom thereof, the operator has merely to lower the tubing until it reaches the bottom of the well, then raise it to give the said clearance and set the ring of slips into the tapered opening 17 in the upper tubing-ring 16. The tubing is then cut of]? at the proper distance above the casing-head, and a thread is cut on the end of the tubing while in the said position, The T-head 13 is screwed on the threads. 5 The tubing is not by m invention supported on threads made in t e field, but wholly by the slips l8 and there is no danger of the tubing being broken off so low by something falling against it as to allow the tubing to drop down the casing.

In the operation of pulling the tubing out of the well-casing 1, a hoisting device such as a regular tubing or casing hook, would be passed through the upper ends of the two long links 25 hooked under the ears 24-. As soon as the first tubing-coupling 11 comes in contact with the lower ring 7, it lifts both the rings 7 and 9 and the packing 8 clear of the lower tubing-ring 5. When the coupling 11' is well above the ring 5, an elevator of usual construction is laid upon the tubingring 5 and placed around-the tubing in the usual way. The tubing is then lowered until the coupling 11 rests on the elevator in the usual manner. The length 10 of the tubing is'removed from the coupling 11. The hoisting. device is then disconnected from the links 25 and connected to the elevator and the tubing raised until another coupling on the tubing comes above the tubing-ring 5,

A handle 23 is atsaid strin The section of tubing above the said cou- *pling is then removed and the elevator,

which has been taken from this section is put under the coupling at its lower end. The

hoisting device is connected to the elevator and the tubing again raised, the ring of slips 18 being removed from their seats and replaced therein below the next coupling which comes above the ring 5. These steps are repeated until the required number of lengths of tubing has been removed. It is thus seen that I employ only a single elevator whereas the usual practice requires two, one to do the elevating and the other to support the tubin sections just above the tubing-rim i t isto be noted that, by connecting the slips together pivotally except at one oint, they can be handled by one man and kept in alinement with each other. The handles being on the slips next to the joint without hinge-plates make it easy to open and close the ring ofslips.

I claim:

1. The combination of a casing-head, upper and lower tubing rings adapted to surround a string of tubing and each having the upper end of its opening correspondingly tapered downwardly, slips adapted to be seated in the tapered portion of either opening and grip a section of said string and suspend the string on the corresponding tubing-ring and means on the upper ring for attaching a hoisting device.

2. The combination of a casing-head, upper and lower tubing-rings adapted to surround a string of tubing and each having the .upper end of its opening correspondingly tapered downwardly, means for secur ing the lower tubing ring to the casing-head, slips adapted to be seated in the tapered portion of either opening and grip a section of 110 and suspend the string on the correspon ing tubing-ring, and means on the upper ring for attachinga hoisting devlce.

3. The combination. of a string of tubing, 11.5 a casing-head surrounding a section of the string, a tubing-ring surrounding the said section and supported by the casing-head, packing surrounding the said section and supported by the said tubing-ring, a tubing- 120 ring surrounding the tubing above the packing and resting thereon, and slips adapted to be seated in an enlargement of the upper end of the opening in each tubing-ring, whereby the string may be supported from either 125 tubing-ring at will.

4. The combination of a string of tubing, a casing-head, a tubing-ring thereon having the upper end of its opening tapered downwardly, slips adapted to be seated in thesaid 180 opening and to grip a section of said string and suspend the string on the tubing-ring. and means for pivotally connecting adjacent slips together.

5. The combination of a string of tubing, a casing-head, a tubing-ring thereon having the upper end of its opening tapered downwardly, slips adapted to be seated in the said opening and to grip a section of said string and suspend the string on the tubing-ring, and means for pivotall connecting adjacent slips together, one pair of adjacent slips being without a pivotal connection.

6. The combination of a string of tubing,

a casing-head, a tubing-ring thereon having the upper end of its opening tapered downwardly, slips adapted to be seated in the said opening and to grip a section of said string and suspend the string-on the tubing-ring,

means for pivotally connecting adjacent slips together, one pair of adjacent slips being without a pivotal connedtion and a handle on each of the last named slips.

7. A series of slips adapted to form a ring, plates bridging each joint but one between adjacent slips, and pivots extending through the plates into the slips in contact therewith.

8. A series of slips adapted to form a ring, plates bridging each joint but one between adjacent slips,. and pivots extending through the plates into the slips in contact therewith, the pivot openings in the plates being elongated in directions at an angle with the meeting plane of the adjacent slips.

9. The combination of a tubular holder having its bore tapering from one end, a plurality of slips adapted to form a ring having its outer surface tapered to corrcspond to the taper of the holder and its interior surface provided with gripping teeth to bite againsta pipe engaged by'thc said slips when seated in said holder, and means hinging together some of the adjacent slips.

Signed at Toledo, Ohio, this 29th day of November 1919.

CLYDE S. WRIGHT. 

